EU considers admitting new countries without full voting rights: Politico learned how this could help Ukraine
Kyiv • UNN
The European Union is considering a proposal to allow new countries to join the EU without full voting rights, which could make leaders like Viktor Orban more amenable to Ukraine's accession. This initiative would allow countries like Ukraine to enjoy many of the benefits of EU membership, but without veto power.
The European Union is considering allowing new countries to join the EU without full voting rights, which could make leaders like Hungarian Prime Minister Viktor Orbán more amenable to the bloc's accession of countries like Ukraine, Politico reports, writes UNN.
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The proposal to change EU membership rules is in the early stages of development and must be approved by all countries, according to three European diplomats and an EU official familiar with the discussions. The idea is that new members would gain full rights after the EU completely changes its operating system to make it more difficult for individual countries to veto.
This is the latest attempt by pro-enlargement governments in the bloc, such as Austria and Sweden, to breathe new life into the enlargement process, which is currently being blocked by Budapest and several other capitals over fears that it could lead to unwanted competition in local markets or jeopardize security interests.
"Future members should waive their veto rights until key institutional reforms, such as the introduction of qualified majority voting in most policy areas, are implemented," said Anton Hofreiter, chairman of the European Affairs Committee of the German Bundestag. "Enlargement should not be slowed down by individual EU member states blocking reforms."
This initiative would allow countries on the path to membership, such as Ukraine, Moldova, and Montenegro, to enjoy many of the benefits of EU membership, but without the right to veto – a right that EU governments have always valued as a crucial tool to prevent EU policies they dislike.
The idea behind this proposal, which, according to the same diplomats and officials, is being informally discussed by EU countries and the European Commission, is that admitting new countries without veto rights, at least in the initial stages of their membership, would allow them to join on more flexible terms without requiring a revision of the EU's core treaties, which some EU governments are unable to revise.
Previously, EU leaders insisted on the need for such a revision before the bloc could approve new members, such as Ukraine, highlighting the risk of exacerbating stalemates in Brussels. However, attempts to abolish the veto right for existing EU members have met with strong resistance not only from Hungary but also from France and the Netherlands.
The plan to admit new members without voting rights "would ensure that we maintain the ability to act even in an enlarged EU," Hofreiter said. "From discussions with representatives of the Western Balkan states, I receive clear signals that this approach is considered constructive and viable," he noted.
The requirement not to admit new countries until the EU reforms its way of functioning risks the bloc being able to "stifle enlargement through the back door," he said.
This initiative coincides with growing frustration in candidate countries from Eastern Europe and the Western Balkans, which have undertaken extensive internal reforms but have not come closer to membership years after applying, the publication writes. In the case of Montenegro, EU accession talks began in 2012.
"The last country to join [the EU] was Croatia over 10 years ago, and in the meantime, the United Kingdom left the EU," said Montenegrin President Jakov Milatović in an interview with Politico. "That's why I believe now is the time to revive this process, and also to somewhat revive the idea of the EU as a club that still has an attraction to it."
Ukrainian Deputy Prime Minister Taras Kachka supported these concerns, calling for "creative" solutions to unblock EU enlargement. Kyiv's application for EU membership is currently being delayed by Hungary's veto.
Waiting is not an option. So we need to have a solution here and now. This is important for Ukraine, but also for the European Union... I think that as Russia tests European security with drones, the same is being done by undermining the unity of the European Union.
While European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen has placed enlargement at the center of her strategic agenda, speaking of potential membership for Ukraine and Moldova by 2030, EU countries have so far resisted attempts to accelerate the process.
Earlier this month, EU countries prevented an attempt by European Council President António Costa to advance on enlargement.
Ahead of the European Commission's upcoming assessment of the state of enlargement negotiations with various candidate countries, the so-called enlargement package, one EU diplomat suggested that the European Commission could also try to accelerate the enlargement process by moving forward with negotiations without needing official approval from all 27 EU countries each time. This would also avoid giving Orbán a veto at every stage of the negotiations.
Most importantly, within the enlargement package, the European Commission is also expected to provide a proposal for internal EU reforms to prepare the bloc for the admission of new members.
At the same time, the preliminary draft conclusions for the meeting of EU leaders in Brussels on Thursday make no mention of enlargement, which has caused outrage among pro-enlargement countries.
EU membership, it is noted, is often presented as the bloc's key geopolitical tool against aggressive Russia.
"When we look at enlargement today, one thing is clear: we need to act faster, less bureaucratically and more effectively," Austrian Minister for European Affairs Claudia Plakolm told Politico. "If the EU does not step up its game, we will cede ground to third players who are already waiting to take our place."
Future EU membership was a key issue in Moldova's recent elections, which saw pro-European President Maia Sandu win, while EU membership was a key motivation for Ukraine as early as the Maidan protests against Russian rule in 2014.
Ukrainians have been fighting every day for the past three and a half years to keep Russia out of Europe. In Moldova, trust in the EU's prospects was crucial... I am confident that member states will not jeopardize this."